


Sanctuary

by WinchesterWarrenSon



Series: Battle Scars Series [12]
Category: Dragon Ball, Saw (Movies)
Genre: Attempted Murder, Crossover, Developmentally Disabled Son Goku, Disabled Character, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, M/M, Problems with Unreality, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-22
Updated: 2015-05-22
Packaged: 2018-03-31 16:18:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3984646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinchesterWarrenSon/pseuds/WinchesterWarrenSon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Goku understands that something is wrong, he doesn't just stand by and let it happen. But Goku saving the lives of others ends up having a bigger toll on his new family than he ever anticipated. And the reveal of his developmental disability has made his previous family rather unbalanced. It's odd, though, how much of this gets resolved without him needing to do anything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sanctuary

**Author's Note:**

> This makes absolutely no sense in the Saw franchise timeline, but pretend this Jigsaw and Amanda are exactly the same as before except they just live in the Dragon Ball universe.

It almost felt like Yamcha was living in a different time line than the one he started out in. He wondered if that was possible. That he could just wake up one day and be in a different time line. With no control over going back home. 

Though if that had been true, what would his "home" timeline be? One where he wasn't such a loser? One where coming back to life hadn't hurt so bad? One where he was still with Bulma? Where would the branching off have occurred? 

But it felt so . . . bizarre and weird to just wake up one morning, Goku hovering over him and asking what they should do with all the children. 

" _Children_?" Yamcha asked, sitting up straight and finding their too-small apartment crowded with a variety of disabled children. 

Goku had apparently kidnapped a bunch of developmentally disabled children from institutions to save them from the horrors that were on the TV, and Yamcha had no idea when he could have done this. 

The police were looking for them (why wouldn't they be, it was only about a hundred children missing), and Yamcha was genuinely at a loss for what they were going to do. 

Somehow they managed to get Bulma's help on this. Through the power of money and Bulma's attitude/lookout on life, they were able to not just make it so the children didn't have to go to dangerous institutions, but Bulma set up a new sanctuary of sorts for them. It was more like a boarding school, and all of a sudden, Goku, Yamcha, Puar, Oolong, and Bulma were in charge of this . . . admittedly really cool place. 

While they started out with just having children and just having developmentally disabled kids, they were slowly introducing others with disabilities - different disabilities and adults along with the children. 

It . . . was all so overwhemling, and Yamcha felt like he couldn't keep up. 

Goku didn't understand how much this was costing, how much time and energy the whole project actually needed, because he could only really focus on the end result and what he could do with his hands. "Abstract" things like numbers and money didn't even pop into his head if he wasn't forced to think about it. 

Doing this on top of their paying jobs was impossible, and no amount of Bulma's support (monetary or otherwise) made him feel better about it. If anything happened to this project, they were so screwed. And while Yamcha didn't want anything bad to happen to any of these people they were now responsible for protecting, he didn't think he had the ability to do this properly, and they _deserved_ for this to be done properly. 

It terrified him, and he ended up just sitting there staring at frightening bills and letters from the state and courts about what they can and can't do in the light of the lawsuits and pending criminal charges. Just because they had Bulma backing them up didn't mean it had magically disappeared either. 

This was all too much for Yamcha to deal with, and he was . . . _wishing_ this was a different timeline he didn't belong in. It would be so much easier if he could just . . . somehow make this disappear. 

They had hired some help - a woman who was already looking after a new member of their sanctuary. Her name was Amanda. Yamcha actually did recognize her from the few times he went to a health clinic in cases of emergencies when he couldn't afford the hospital. He remembered Jill Tuck being a very kind woman, but he really hadn't thought about her outside of seeing her the few times. She had been pregnant last he saw her, and he hadn't seen her since. 

He did recognize Amanda, though, and he remembered the small but deep conversation they had had back then. He had honestly hired her on the spot, trusting her to help him. 

It was late at night and they were doing the rounds around the building when they actually got to talk alone. 

"I'm rather surprised you remembered me," Amanda said. 

"Heh. Surprised you remembered me too. But I guess it's not everyday you . . . ." 

"Admit to a stranger you tried to kill yourself," Amanda finished, smiling a weird smile that Yamcha was very familiar with, having given it to himself in the mirror on bad days. "How has that been going? I mean, have you gotten better?" 

"Um...." Yamcha sucked on his lower lip. "No. If anything, since I last saw you, it's gotten worse.... My high moments are higher and feel better, but when I get low...." 

"You get real low," Amanda finished. "Drugs?" 

"No. I mean, none that I shoot up my arm or swallow, outside of prescription that my roommates help me monitor, just in case...." 

"What kind?" 

"Xanax." 

"Ah. Big dose?" 

"I'm supposed to break them into smaller pieces, but if it's really bad, I take the whole pill, and that takes me to Zombie Town." 

Amanda nodded. "Anything else?" 

Yamcha bit at his lower lip. "Well, you know Goku?" 

"The guy who started all this? Which is crazy, by the way. You'll be lucky if you're not put away for a long time," Amanda said. 

Yamcha laughed a little nervously. "Yeah.... I know.... But, uh, Goku and I are kinda . . . he's divorced from his wife now and we're . . . ." 

Comprehension appeared on Amanda's face, and her eyebrows flew up. 

"Oh, cool. So . . . he's your high," Amanda said. 

Yamcha blushed. "Yeah. When I am high, yeah." 

"But when you're not . . . ?" 

Yamcha bit his lower lip again. "It's not his fault. And I'm not saying that to convince myself, it really isn't. He tries so hard to understand, and he's the only one who I can really talk to about it and not expect things to be done about it...." 

". . . But that's also the kind of attitude that'll let you slip away. When you just can't fight anymore. And then what?"

"He'll be . . . not with me anymore." 

"Won't he be alone?" 

"I don't think Goku _can_ be alone. He likes everybody too much." 

"Hmm." 

"What about you?" 

"Huh?" 

"I hadn't expected you to get into taking care of people who can't take care of themselves." 

Amanda smiled. "I guess you could say I found my calling." 

After that conversation, there really hadn't been too much time to talk to anybody. Goku managed to keep everyone they were looking after happy, and Yamcha . . . honestly was wanting a way out of their situation. They surely could find good families for the children who had basically been abandoned by their parents in the institutions (or give them back to the families who didn't know better or were ignorant about just how dangerous the places were and were safe for the children to be around). 

He just wasn't cut out for this kind of work, and he didn't think Goku even realized it _was_ work and.... 

And he couldn't do this. 

And . . . theoretically . . . if this was a dream or something . . . because it felt too strange and crazy to be real . . . it couldn't be real, this was too fucking _insane_ . . . .

Yamcha was staring at the razor blade in his hand and at the scars on his wrists, unable to ask himself if he really wanted to do this or if he was _just that certain_ that this wasn't real . . . or that he couldn't do this. . . . 

He sensed a presence behind him, but he couldn't bother himself to turn around. It didn't feel like Goku, but whether it was Puar or Oolong or Bulma.... 

Though the longer he sat there and they did nothing, the more suspicious he grew. 

Only Goku would've been quiet this long. Puar would've been in tears and begging him not to by now, and Oolong would've been panicking and trying to convince him not to, and Bulma.... 

Yamcha turned his head around. He just barely got a glimpse at the pig mask before the figure behind him lunged at him. He instead used the razor as a weapon, but the chloroform knocked him out cold. 

 

Chichi had had a similar encounter, and when she awoke, she found herself cramped and in the dark. She felt around her surroundings, only to discover that she was locked inside some kind of metal box. Panic pumped through her veins, and she pounded on the roof of the box. 

"HELP!" she screamed. "GOHAN! GOTEN!" She banged harder. " _GOKU_!" 

She heard a light turn on, and light poured into the box from an opening on the side of the box. She stuck her hand through it, but with how cramped she was in the box, she couldn't maneuver it into any helpful position. As she pulled her hand back into the box, she saw that she could see another, glass box outside. In the glass box were a variety of her possessions. She saw her wedding ring, which she had still been wearing, even while sort-of, kind-of seeing Piccolo. Childhood things of Gohan's, Goten's baby blanket, and what she had left of Goku. Goku's own wedding ring that he never wore, clothes he had left behind and never came back for. 

The light fell down onto a tape player. Chichi grasped at it and pressed the play button. 

"Hello, Chichi. You don't know me, but I know your ex-husband. After some investigating, I noticed that despite agreeing to the divorce and having a new beau, you still haven't let go of a man who you never could have. Between the inability to comprehend the commitment of marriage and ultimately being fundamentally uninterested in you romantically, Son Goku was never yours to have. A pipe dream of your father's to be a part of Son Gohan Senior's family. You push and push your children to do their best, and you pushed and pushed your ex-husband to do the right thing. But now I'm going to push you to do something you've never done before: put yourself first. 

"In the glass box are items of your ex-husband and your children. Things you've been holding onto for sentimental value. To cry over when you think you're alone. What you need to do is set them on fire and let go of your love for them. It is only holding you back. You are no one without your family, and that needs to change. Or you'll never be the woman you thought you'd be when you were a little girl. Independent. Powerful. A leader. Show me that woman, Chichi, by pressing the red button just above your head, and you will live. Fail, and you will die in that box, leaving your children motherless. But be warned; you're not the only one being tested today. Surviving your test is only the beginning for another."

The tape ended, and Chichi remembered the news bulletins on the television. 

She was in a Jigsaw game. She was in a game of a fucking serial killer. 

What did he mean by another? Who else was being tested? How did he get into her house to steal her things? How did she get here? Did the others know she was gone? Surely Gohan and Goten and Piccolo knew she was missing and were looking for her.... But would they be able to find her?

Both in the moment and in hindsight, the solution was obvious. The game only hurt her if she stayed in the box. All she had to do was set the things in the glass box on fire and she'd be set free. Compared to what she had heard on the news, her game was easy. Simple. Almost harmless. 

But she realized this Jigsaw had a point when her eyes landed on the objects _in_ the box and she felt her hand hesitate over the button that would set it all aflame. 

Staring at the items, she was caught in a wind of memories of the _happy_ days with Goku, even though there were so few.... 

She was holding on too tightly, even now, to a man who had never loved her the way she wanted to be loved. Who wasn't able to be there for her, regardless of the reasons for that. And she felt so guilty for not trying harder to understand why he wasn't being who he needed to be for their family. Whether it was because he _couldn't_ or because he had no interest or just didn't understand what was expected of him. She felt like everything that was wrong with their marriage was her fault, and she felt like she had taken advantage of Goku, no matter how many times she was told by Goku that Goku had wanted to marry her and had wanted to have sex with her. What he said - what anyone said - didn't matter and didn't change how she felt like she was some kind of monster for convincing someone who didn't realize what the fine print was to do something with her. 

And it didn't change the fact that according to the law, she and Goku never were supposed to have been married in the first place. Because Goku couldn't legally be married, couldn't legally consent to sex, regardless of how Goku felt about his ability to consent, regardless about his status as an adult. The way the law was now and had been throughout their marriage said he couldn't, and the knowledge of it so late after it was said and done just made her feel wrong and ugly and cruel. 

Her wedding ring reminded her every day, and Goku's things and pictures served as a reminder that she had done something wrong, even if she hadn't known she had. 

Tears rolled down her face. She loved him, even now, and she couldn't manage to forgive herself. 

She couldn't afford to die here, though. Her children needed her, would always need her. She . . . was nothing without her husband and children, and she supposed that was Jigsaw's point. (But how did he learn this about her? Why her?) 

She wasn't anyone outside of a wife and a mother, and right then, she wasn't even a wife.... 

She played the tape again. 

She remembered when she last saw Piccolo. She knew he had seen the wedding ring was back on her finger. He had noticeably backed off and became treating her as before, as though they weren't really friends and he was just there to check up on Gohan. It had hurt, but she had ignored the pain because honestly, it was her fault in the first place. He was just protecting himself. 

He was putting himself first. 

Chichi took a deep breath - though from the smell, it was probably filled with dust and maybe even tiny metal shavings - and pressed the button. 

She watched as all of Goku's remaining pictures and clothes burst into flames, and the box she was trapped in burst open. Chichi let out a startled shout, not having expected the box to literally _spring_ open and make such a racket. The box almost tipped over with the effort of opening, but luckily it stayed upright. 

Chichi climbed out of the box, only to hear a scream just in the other room. 

She rushed into the adjacent room and gasped, covering her mouth, as she watched razor wire dig into Yamcha's skin. It was pulling at him on his arms and legs. 

A television set suddenly sparked to life, and an image of a hideous puppet appeared. 

"Hello, Yamcha. The beginning of your game means that your boyfriend's ex-wife has won hers." 

Yamcha forced his head up and eyes forward, first looking at the TV, then spotting Chichi in the doorway. 

"She has successfully placed value on herself as opposed to the men and children in her life. You, on the other hand, have the opposite problem. You put too much focus on yourself and your failure to measure up to other people's standards and how they see you as a person. It consumes your life and leads you to want to take shortcuts. Avoid the judgements. So much so that you'd rather let yourself die and leave your loved ones devastated. It is not a struggle with value as it is a measurement of that value. You are so focused on your self and yet have such little value on your life that you can't imagine how it would actually affect even those closest to you. You are convinced that they will eventually get over it - and forget.

"You're going to have to change your perspective on that. In front of you," A light came on and revealed a metal construction that held pictures of Puar and Oolong at arm-level and pictures of Bulma and Goku down about the same level as the razor wire around his legs. "is a wooden tower that serves as a safe for the key that will let Chichi get you down, and then you will both be able to leave. A copy of each key is behind each picture. It is up to you to choose who you are willing to value your life for. You will need to pull your arm or leg against the razor wire to pop the locking mechanism open. You may lose a limb in the process. There is no way around it. Chichi cannot open the safes, less she be electrocuted. No short cuts. I'll see you at the Sanctuary if you survive." 

Yamcha's jaw dropped at the last sentence before the TV shut itself off. The sanctuary!? He was where Goku, Puar, Oolong, and Bulma were!? And all those disabled kids and adults!? Fuck - ! 

"JIGSAW YOU FUCKING FUCKER!" Yamcha screamed, knowing who Jigsaw was same way as Chichi did. 

He was panicking, he was worried, what if that serial killing fucker did something to the ones who couldn't protect themselves or the kids or Puar or Oolong or Bulma or - ? 

Goku was with them, Goku could protect them, Goku could handle - 

_What if torture technician extraordinaire figured out a way to hurt Goku?_

He couldn't think straight, and he looked to the safes and the pictures on them and tried to figure out which limb went to each picture. 

Leg. He didn't need a leg, or rather he already knew how to adapt without a working leg, so it should be a leg. 

_Fuck fuck fuck, what if Goku couldn't protect them in time, what if it was too late, what if everyone was hurt or worse when he got there and Goku couldn't take care of all 100+ of them - !_

The rule was to move the limb forward in accordance with the picture that was the biggest motivator, so without really thinking about which leg it was, Yamcha started pushing the leg that matched the picture of Goku and _oh fuck that hurt!_

Yamcha screamed, and Chichi covered her eyes, refusing to watch as the razor wire cut deep into Yamcha's skin. Blood spurted out and ran down his leg, and Yamcha pushed and pushed and pushed, screaming all the louder the more he pushed and the deeper the razor wire cut. 

He didn't remember until he had already heard the click of the lock of the key behind Goku's picture, but Goku's picture matched his bad leg. At least it wasn't making him have _two_ bad legs.... 

Yamcha couldn't see anything through the tears that had built up in his eyes, and he could still feel the warm blood going down his leg, but he could feel _less_ leg, and that was concerning, but all he wanted right then was to get down from there and go check on Goku. 

He could hear and feel Chichi getting him down, and he fell to the ground, landing on both feet and screaming as more pain shot up his body, and he could feel that the cut in his leg was horrid. 

Chichi had to help carry him out of the building. She found a fire alarm pully and pulled hard on it. They were soon picked up by emergency vehicles, Yamcha taken to the hospital. 

With the extent of the injury, significant stitching had to occur in order to close the wound and make sure it healed. Yamcha couldn't focus on listening to the doctors, he had to get back, he had to get to Goku and the others, he had to. 

Chichi got in contact with the others to let them know where they were, and the police were asking questions, and everything was a confusing blur of pain. 

Apparently he and Chichi had been missing for days. The relief that Goku, Bulma, Gohan, Goten, Piccolo, Puar, and Oolong had at learning they were alive and here was immeasurable. 

Things had happened with the sanctuary they had built, and it was going to be a temporarily stopping place for those taken from abusive environments from here on out, and it would be a private business so it could be more manageable. People would come to the business, not them coming to others. Bulma would handle administration until they could hire someone else to do it, and Goku actually did really well in organizing daily schedules and adjusting to everyone's physical and mental needs (he just couldn't handle the actual administration end of things. Or the legal stuff.) The charges against Goku (and Puar, Oolong, and Yamcha for assisting) were actually being dropped due to the nature of the situation (and the fact that Goku could easily break handcuffs and the police were worried about no one taking them seriously if they couldn't arrest Goku. Much like how Vegeta had never been taken to task for the mass murders he was on video record of having committed. 

Yamcha didn't want to think it, but soon after Yamcha was let out of the hospital, Amanda Young had left the sanctuary without a trace, along with the man she had already been taking care of before she started work there, John Kramer. And in a conversation, Goku admitted to having talked to John Kramer at length about their lives. 

"He just seemed really interested in everything, so I just talked a lot, and he asked questions about Chichi and you. And we talked a lot while you were missing. He said not to worry 'cause you were going through a test...." 

Yamcha told the police what Goku had told him, but Amanda Young and John Kramer were gone. He didn't hear about them again until the news announced that John Kramer and Amanda Young were both dead.


End file.
